I stumbled upon this site because I was searching for a correct way to say that I was “sorry for the delay WITH my response,” (or ..“for the delay IN my response?”) anyway.. I always followed my idea which was, if I received an email from someone I knew or not, and my response was time sensitive to that person and/or the email had to do with our livelihood, then apologizing for not returning a prompt reply feels only natural to me. I have always felt this simple gesture was the least I could do.
I don’t check my email everyday, but probably should since a lot of others do. If someone wants to keep up with the rest of the world, we have to “go with the flow.” Especially if a portion of someones job pertains to the use of an email account, then they should keep on top of their inbox if they want to show they are good at their job.
Or you could set up a generated message! One that is generic so it would apply to both work and family… A message you make that automatically replays to any emails you receive. For example the message could say you “will respond in X (fill in how long)” or “I will look into that and get back to you at my earliest convenience” (but make it more friendly or official). Doing this buys you some time if you don’t check emails everyday or just don’t respond to them right upon reading them.
OK. Hope that made sense…
Good Luck!